Whiteout
by Matrineal
Summary: Rufus, Elena, and what could happen with a cup of hot chocolate.


_**A/N: So I decided to write this short story thanks to a prompt I created on goodwitch08's forum. It got me thinking and this was what happened. For people who are confused about the title; a Whiteout is when a snow storm is so strong you can't see anything more than a few inches in front of your face. It makes for some very dangerous conditions. You know I love reviews! Always appreciated yet never expected.**_

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Disclaimer: I don't own FFVII, or the characters, just this tidbit of a story.

It was beyond ridiculous. Somehow Rufus found it impossible that snow could continue to fall for a week straight without stopping once. He glanced over to the wall beside the window, internally taking note of the notches leading up to the third section of his window. So much for getting out of here. The snow had piled so high against the window that he could no longer see out of it. Rufus grimaced. This was definitely as unsatisfactory as it could possibly get. At least his room was equipped with a fireplace for warmth and light in case the oil lamps ran out of fuel.

He ran his fingers through his hair in exasperation. How much longer would this storm last? He should have been better prepared. Not a day in his adult life went by where he had been guilty of being so unprepared for weather changes such as this. All it took was a slight shift in wind pattern. What had started as a light snow, blew out of proportion to a snowstorm within a few hours. It was supposed to be a quick trip to check with the possibility of restarting Mako excavation and extraction. They were supposed to be back at headquarters by evening. A week ago. How _this _could have happened was disappointing. The sound of pounding up the stairs against the hard wood floor told him that it was Elena returning from her daring escapade outside. Everyone else in town was shut up in their homes. Even the Inn keeper bailed on them; leaving the two to fend for themselves in the building.

There was a knock at his door, of which he bade enter, letting in the small woman. She pulled off the hood from her head, along with the scarf that covered her face. She was smart to bring heavy winter gear. It only infuriated him more.

Rufus turned to face her, eyes glancing over her hands which unzipped her coat and shrugged it off. "Well?"

"Still no good, Sir. The blades are iced over, which means we're grounded." Her answer was just as bad as the snow melting from her boots into a puddle on the floor.

"How much longer?"

"I really can't say, Sir. These things are unpredictable. It could end tomorrow, a few more days, or weeks. Until the skies clear, we're stuck."

That's Elena. Most of the time she's a naïve young woman, who definitely has some wits about her. She's never afraid to say things as they are despite the mistake of giving too much information. Nevertheless, her work hasn't been anything if not effective. For a rookie sent in to replace Reno while he was out of commission, she sure took her job much more seriously.

"Have you tried contacting Tseng?" he asked with an edge. Rufus hated being in one place away from headquarters for too long, just as he realized his new hatred of snow.

"Of course, Sir. I regret to say that service is down along with the land lines. We have no way of reaching anyone until the storm clears."

How can she say that as easily as if it wasn't that much of a concern? His grimace deepened at the thought of her not being bothered. There was no way he was just going to bed down and wait for the storm to end in this frozen box called a Northern Continent. It should not be keeping him from going home! Or so he thought. Another glance outside only proved Elena's point further in that they won't be going anywhere for a while.

How absurd.

He could hear Elena shuffling around the room behind him, then the door closing and leaving him in silence. It wasn't that he didn't want the company. However, he made sure that Elena had her own room. She did have personal preferences after all. She also knew her expectations as a Turk. Sure, she was fresh for the job, but she hadn't done anything extravagant to displease him and be let go. Things that Tseng had reprimanded her for, while they were slip ups, Rufus found that he could overlook as long as the same mistake wasn't made a second time. Elena was good about that. He noticed that she was a fast learner; in most areas of her position anyway. On other things, Rufus hated how she couldn't seem to keep her mouth shut about confidential information, especially to that AVALANCHE member, Cloud. What happened in Mythril was inexcusable.

Rufus saw that Elena had deeply regretted what she had done. After Tseng reprimanded her actions, she was sent to him. The fear in her eyes showed that there was everything and nothing she could possibly give in order to keep her job. And though she kept her mouth shut while being further reprimanded, something had nagged him to give her a second chance. So, he did. Since then, Elena has proven to take her work much more seriously. He gave her this chance to redeem herself. Though, Tseng wasn't so sure that was a good decision. He'll just have to see. Now, what was there to do during a snowstorm?

XxXxX

Elena laid propped against the headboard of her bed, wrapped in blankets from both her bed, as well as the second empty bed in her room. It was so cold; she had opted to change out of her uniform into a cowl neck sweater she packed. After spending nearly an hour in the frozen, half buried helicopter, she hated to tell her boss that there was nothing either of them could do. Elena could tell that he wanted nothing more than to go home. She could see that the townspeople wanted nothing more than for them to leave. Not much could be done about that. Why were they so against the prospect of a reactor? It would help generate energy to keep the houses warm during a snowstorm like this. Not that Elena had anything against oil lamps and warm fires. The thought crossed her mind that perhaps she should stay with Rufus since he had a fireplace and his room was much warmer than her own.

As far as entertainment went, there wasn't much. She had spent a few hours staring at the ceiling until wandering down to the lobby for reading material.

There was no way she could mess up anymore. While she picked through a sad collection of mysteries and badly written romances, she couldn't help but feel a little irked that they were the only people in the Inn. Tseng said not to take the unwelcome responses too personally. It was easier said than done. After climbing out of the helicopter and receiving a nasty glare from a kid, she was ready to lash out into a snowball fight with the little brute. That was until remembering the second chance with a warning pasted to it, which told her to ignore the kid and what other townspeople might have said.

Elena headed back up to her room with one of each book genre tucked under her arm for some reading. It was better than staring at the ceiling and attempting calls that were inevitable. Was it just her, or was the room getting even colder? She shivered, climbing under the thick blankets she piled on her bed. What would make everything better would be a large cup of hot chocolate. Why hadn't she thought of that before? It was the best thing for warming up. Not to mention, it was tasty. Question was, did the Inn have any readily available? There was only one way to find out.

Unfortunately, the lobby only had two packets left. Better that the Innkeeper left something, rather than take it all with him when he left. Two packets would make enough for a very rich cup or two for her and Rufus. With that, she jumped over the front desk to the back in search for a tea kettle. The rooms on the ground floor were already freezing from the door being opened and closed by her leaving and entering when Rufus had her check on the chopper that afternoon. Now, the oil lamps were threatening to go out while she was still down in the back boiler room. If Rufus was running low on firewood, it might have been wise to accumulate some more. In that case, the chair near her would do quite nicely. She would rather him stay as warm as possible, so that if anything happened to her, he wouldn't be left with nothing.

XxXxX

What in Odin's name was that awful racket?! Rufus shifted under the covers in his bed, pulling the quilt up more in hopes that it would keep him a bit warmer. The fire was dying and there wasn't any spare wood too keep warm by in the room. So much for keeping warm. He already felt lousy for thinking this was going to be a quick trip and hadn't packed much more than a night or two at most. Elena had warned him of the possibility that they could be stuck longer than necessary. Of course his stubbornness refused any such possibility. His mother had always gotten on his case about packing extra when he went on business trips with his father up to the northern village of Icicle Inn.

What _was_ that noise!? After a second it stopped, being enveloped by the expanse of the Inn. Rufus sat up thinking that maybe he should have gone downstairs to check on Elena and see what it was that she was doing. Before he could resolve on a decision, her boots could be heard coming up the stairs and stopped at his door. He lay down and turned over when she knocked, muttering a groggy word of entrance. Geez it was cold!

"Sir? I brought us something to drink."

"Good. You can place it near the fire," was his response before a shiver came over him. A loud clatter told him that she wasn't leaving. The sound of wood scraping against wood and an iron stake breaking apart cooling charcoal didn't help him get to sleep.

"The oil lamps are dying, Sir." She left his room again, coming back after a short time and closing the door behind her. He didn't dare face her and see what she was doing. That was until a wave of warmth covered him from an outside source. Rufus faced Elena. The only thing he could make out in the darkened room was her golden hair, softly lit by a dying fire. She tossed what looked to be a chair leg into the meek flames. It unnerved him how Elena did things without asking. Yet at the same time, he was kinda glad that she didn't ask permission. It was easier to deal with someone who was getting the feel for his personality, than someone who didn't have a clue. The fire crackled with another chair leg added to the flames.

Elena took a seat on the hard wood floor what appeared to be dangerously close to the open flames. A pang of concern ran through him. Not entirely for Elena's safety, but more of his own. Was that a crime?

"You should come warm up over here, Sir. It's going to take a while for the fire to catch." Was she really concerned for his well being?

"It wouldn't look good if anything happened to you, would it?" Her tone was airy, as if she wasn't entirely there. What could she possibly be thinking about? More than that, she was speaking to him as if he were her equal. While the thought of someone from a lower station than him was speaking to him as if they were on the same page irked him, he couldn't help but be somewhat relieved. All his life, the only person who spoke to him as such was his mother. That was until she lost it and was absorbed in nothing besides herself.

Silently, Rufus crawled out from the confines of his bed, taking the quilts draped over his shoulders and wandered closer to where Elena sat. He took a seat next to her, wrapping himself more securely. She happened to be right. This area of the room was indeed warmer than where his bed was situated.

It was as if she was a different person, now. Not dressed in uniform, Elena had lost her formal tone along with everything that really made her a Turk in his presence. At that moment she was just another woman sitting in front of the fire. She had status thanks to her father having worked for Shin-Ra. However, she didn't act like a lot of the other women who had the same. It let him see her for more than just being a Turk. It wasn't supposed to happen, but seeing her clothing other than her uniform showed that she was a pretty woman who could possibly have anyone. It was a window into a world he wasn't familiar with. But why did the idea of her being with someone outside of his spectrum bother him? Why was he even curious about her personal life? Rufus found himself wanting to ask her something but held back, thinking that it was better he didn't. He didn't need to know much about her that he couldn't find in the system. Despite doing that, he wouldn't know her at all. It troubled him that he cared so much to even pass the thought of getting to know her. It wasn't the same with the other Turks. They would mind their own business, whereas she would interrupt him at the worst times possible. Yet sometimes they were secretly welcomed. He had to give her credit for that.

The slightest of smiles tugged at the corner of his lip. Elena was like a secret friend who knew without knowing herself, that he needed a break from the madness of other employees bothering him. But he also wanted to know what would make her tick. A test of waters couldn't hurt.

"Do you mind… if I stay here with you..?" Her unexpected request threw him off some. No one had dared to ask him something like that before. They knew the answer. On normal circumstances, his answer would be as it always was. A solid "no." However, a dead Turk in the other room from freezing would mean filling out a lot of paperwork. Not to mention, she was trying very hard to redeem herself. Also, he wanted to get under her skin.

Now that they had a steady fire going, Elena took up a large copper tea kettle and placed it in the hearth. Her ability to multitask intrigued him as to how she could hold a conversation herself, with little answers from him and not worry about burning the Inn down while she was prodding the fire to further life. He was sitting a little ways from her, but her constant persistence to get him to sit closer finally made him give in.

"If the storm doesn't end, do you think they'll find us?"

It was such a childish question. Of course Tseng would have sent Reno and Rude out to look for them. Then again, with the weather being this terrible, Tseng wouldn't have sent anyone out until he was certain that conditions were improving. Rufus was ready to tell Elena this, when the kettle interrupted him. There was no way that storms like this could last forever. He watched as Elena pulled her sweater sleeve over her hand in order to retrieve the hot kettle and pour two mugs of a rich brown beverage he wasn't familiar with. It didn't look very appetizing. However, he couldn't refuse a drink, especially since Elena made it for him. He still had to be polite to a point. She handed him a mug, taking her own and blowing across the top before taking a sip.

"What is this?" he asked being cautious about taking a sip from his own cup. Elena set her mug on the floor for further cooling.

"Hot chocolate, Sir."

Rufus dropped his mug.

XxXxX

Elena moved quickly to set her superior's cup upright to save what little was left. Sure there was enough for another serving, but there wouldn't be more of it till they got back to Midgar. His words saying that he was allergic to chocolate sent her into slight panic mode. How could she have been so careless? Oh gods, what had she done?! Elena hurried to the crouched Rufus who was coughing and forced him to look up at her. She did everything she was trained to do in case of an emergency, but never had Tseng mentioned Rufus being allergic to chocolate. There was just no way that could be possible! Yeah she had moments where she was clueless, but not about anything as important as an allergic reaction.

"I'm so sorry, Sir! Why haven't you told me?!" Her fingers felt for any swelling around his throat just to make sure before leading him to bed. She had messed up again. This time in the worst way possible! Tseng would never forgive her! The only thing Elena felt like she could do was to repeat how sorry she was and that she would do everything in her power to fix it.

When his coughing stopped, she took a step back from him in confusion noticing that he was laughing. It was quiet, but Rufus Shin-Ra was laughing all the same.

"You fell for it." Was the only thing he said before not being able to contain it anymore. Why he thought this was funny, Elena didn't know. She was beyond furious at him playing such a trick on her. She had to restrain herself from physically harming him. Yelling wouldn't do any good, either. So instead, she grabbed her cup from the floor, now cooled, and dumped it over his head. Rufus stopped for a second to glare at her from under chocolate coated hair. A smile of triumph was interrupted by his chuckling then saying, "It was worth it."

Infuriated, Elena stalked out of his room and slammed the door behind her. She made it halfway down the stairs eager to get away from Rufus Shin-Ra and his madness. Surely he had lost it if he thought a stunt like that would be funny. However, the sight of him covered in that hot chocolate had her giggling. What he had done was kinda funny in a twisted sort of way. She had to give him that. It didn't change the fact that she was mad at him for doing it. The tension between them had been too much since her last slip up. Was this his way of saying she was forgiven? If so, there was a lot she had to learn about Rufus Shin-Ra.

XxXxX

Life back at headquarters was uneventful to say the least. The sky was always dark, only to accompany Rufus' mood since returning. He hadn't seen Elena since their return which could have meant she was still mad about the joke. It was possible that she was avoiding him. She did get him back by dumping the cup over his head. Regardless, he did owe her. He called Tseng, telling him to send Elena to his office and when questioned about the reason, he said that he needed to talk to her. In the meantime, Rufus readied two mugs with the same rich liquid Elena called 'hot chocolate'. That was the first time he had ever tried it, and also the first time he had something intentionally dumped over his head.

When she knocked on the door, he waved her in finishing up signing some paperwork. He glanced up to see Elena's eyes wander around his expansive office, then settling on the two mugs atop her boss's desk. He picked up one in each hand and bade her take a seat on the couch. She sat, taking one of the mugs from him while he took a seat next to her.

"Truce?" Elena searched him for any tricks she had recently learned he was capable of. Not finding any, she nodded then took a cautious sip. A small giggle escaped her. Which in turn made Rufus chuckle in response to the memory they shared. Elena was so much more than Tseng gave her credit for, which made the trick Rufus played on her well worth the effort.

_End._


End file.
